In many product areas, a combination of fiercer competition, more transparency and the introduction of electronic systems is driving down margins.
Still, whether they, or Europeans in general, will accept the same when it comes to ever-fiercer competition for investment and jobs remains unclear.
Fiercer competition at home has hurt, too, as arch-rival Matsushita has filled the shelves with cheaper versions of the flat television that Sony pioneered.
Apple's moves come as fiercer competition among hardware makers is leading them to compete over software and giving consumers a familiar experience across various devices.
WSJ: Tim Cook: Apple to Bring iPhone, iPad Features to Mac With Mountain Lion
Certain groups in society that might previously have expected places at the university would now find competition fiercer, he said, adding that students who may have been admitted 10 to 20 years ago probably would not be admitted now.
Even so, the clock is ticking, especially for tablets, where the competition will get fiercer.
There are many more of them now, achieving ever higher standards ever earlier, and competition is getting fiercer as the profession becomes more global.
At this point wages begin to rise as competition for workers becomes fiercer, and corporate profits are squeezed.
From next April, competition will become still fiercer: foreign companies will be allowed to connect their private leased lines to the Japanese domestic network.
As you might imagine, becoming the dominant player in electronics component manufacturing in China -- particularly at a time when competition has never been fiercer -- takes a particular personality type, and after reading BusinessWeek's profile of Foxconn founder Terry Gou, you get a very real sense that the dude meets the criteria.
ENGADGET: BusinessWeek profiles Foxconn founder (and veritable pitbull) Terry Gou
The competition in Sprint Cup is even fiercer and her learning curve will be steep.
The competition for these plays only becomes fiercer each day.
Yet, despite the British workforce's achievements, it is clear that continuous improvements will be needed for years to come as competition from Asian and East European rivals become fiercer by the day.
BBC: NEWS | Business | GM Europe still faces major challenges
Competition among the outsourcing IT firms is seen getting fiercer, too, in India.
FORBES: Struggling Infosys Looks Outside India Government For Growth
Competition in the low-end market is getting fiercer by the day, but having a quad-core solution will help Qualcomm defend its market share better without having to cut prices.
FORBES: Qualcomm Introduces Three New Entry-Level Chipsets To Target Emerging Markets
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